[Event "4NCL Division 1a"]
[Site "Birmingham ENG"]
[Date "2015.02.14"]
[Round "5.116"]
[White "Anderton, David W"]
[Black "Pein, Malcolm"]
[Result "0-1"]
[ECO "E64"]
[WhiteElo "2158"]
[BlackElo "2344"]
[Annotator "Saunders,John"]
[PlyCount "58"]
[EventDate "2015.02.14"]
[WhiteTeam "The AD's"]
[BlackTeam "Wood Green HK"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 c5 3. d5 d6 4. Nc3 g6 5. g3 Bg7 6. Bg2 O-O 7. Nf3 Na6 8. O-O
Nc7 9. a4 Rb8 10. h3 e6 11. e4 exd5 12. cxd5 Re8 13. Re1 a6 14. a5 (14. Bf4 {
may be a bit more accurate here.}) 14... Nb5 {Undermining the defence of e4.}
15. e5 dxe5 16. Rxe5 $6 (16. Nxe5 {keeps the ship steady, although Black has
equalised after} Nd6) 16... Nxc3 17. bxc3 {[diag]} Ne4 $1 {This wins the
c3-pawn, though White can maybe hope to get a tiny bit of play for it.} 18.
Rxe8+ Qxe8 19. Bd2 $2 (19. Bf4 $1 Nxc3 20. Qe1 $1 {is tricky, e.g.} Ne2+ 21.
Kf1 Bd7 22. Bxb8 Bb5 23. Bc7 Nc1+ 24. Kg1 Qxe1+ 25. Nxe1 Bxa1 26. d6 {and,
rather unjustly, White seems to be escaping the consequences of his previous
sins. I wouldn't fancy having to calculate all that at the board, however.})
19... Nxc3 20. Bxc3 Bxc3 21. Ra3 Bf6 22. Nd2 Bd7 23. Ne4 Bd4 24. Qf3 $2 ({
White's last outside chance was} 24. Qxd4 $5 cxd4 25. Nf6+ Kf8 26. Nxe8 Rxe8
27. Rd3 {when he's a pawn down but not completely dead.}) 24... f5 25. Nd6 Qe1+
26. Bf1 b5 $1 27. Ra2 ({Black's last move cuts off the knight's only safe
retreat, but if} 27. axb6 Rxb6 28. Nc4 Rb1 {he's being mullered on the back
rank.}) 27... Qe5 28. Qf4 Qxf4 29. gxf4 c4 {Getting ready to perform the last
rites on the knight with Bc5.} 0-1

[Event "4NCL Division 1a"]
[Site "Birmingham ENG"]
[Date "2015.02.14"]
[Round "5.125"]
[White "Bates, Richard A"]
[Black "Gourlay, Iain"]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "D23"]
[WhiteElo "2342"]
[BlackElo "2372"]
[Annotator "Saunders,John"]
[PlyCount "125"]
[EventDate "2015.02.14"]
[WhiteTeam "Blackthorne Russia"]
[BlackTeam "White Rose 1"]

1. d4 d5 2. c4 c6 3. Nf3 Nf6 4. Qb3 dxc4 5. Qxc4 Bg4 6. Nbd2 Nbd7 7. g3 e6 8.
Bg2 Be7 9. O-O O-O 10. Ne5 Bh5 11. Nxd7 Qxd7 12. Nb3 Rad8 13. e4 Bg6 14. f3 Ne8
15. Bf4 f5 16. Rad1 Nf6 17. Rfe1 Bf7 18. Qc3 Qc8 19. Nc5 Nd7 20. b4 b6 21. Nb3
fxe4 22. fxe4 c5 23. bxc5 bxc5 24. d5 exd5 25. exd5 Bf6 26. Qc1 Nb6 27. d6 c4
28. Nd2 Bh5 29. Nf3 c3 30. Kh1 Qf5 31. Nd4 Qg6 32. Ne6 Bxd1 33. Nxf8 Kxf8 34.
Rxd1 Qf5 35. Qa3 Qd7 36. Rf1 Kg8 37. Qb3+ Qf7 38. Qc2 Qe6 39. Be4 Qh3 40. Re1
g5 41. Bf5 Qh6 42. Bc1 Qg7 43. Re6 Nd7 44. Ba3 Nf8 45. Re7 Qh6 46. Bb4 Qh5 {
[diag] After many adventures, in which the advantage had swung wildly first
one way and then the other, the players arrived here with White to play.} 47.
Qb3+ $2 ({The important thing for White to do here is to make sure Black can't
play Qd1+ or Qf3+ followed by Bd4+. One good move is} 47. Qd3 $1 {since he
doesn't have to bother about 47...Bxe7 48.dxe7 Rxd3 as 49.exf8 is mate. Also,
the attempt at deflection with} c2 {fails to} 48. Qd5+ Kh8 49. Bxc2 {and
everything is nicely covered. Alternatively, 47.Kg2 is not so fancy but wins
just as effectively. But White is under the illusion that he has a direct way
to finish the game...}) 47... Kh8 48. Qxc3 $2 Rxd6 $1 ({Putting a stop to
White's fantasy, which was no doubt} 48... Bxc3 $4 49. Bxc3+ Kg8 50. Rg7+ Kh8
51. Rxg5# {mate.}) 49. g4 Qh6 50. Qe3 $2 Bxe7 $2 ({This should be good enough
to draw, but Black has a probable win after} 50... Rd1+ 51. Kg2 Bd4 $1 {when}
52. Bc3 {fails to} Qc6+ {, etc.}) 51. Qxe7 Rd1+ 52. Kg2 Rc1 $4 (52... Kg8 $1 {
holds, though it's not quite as obvious as it looks. Black probably feared the
consequence of} 53. Bc2 {but Black has} Qc6+ 54. Be4 {and now} Qc8 $1 {when
White can't quite conjure up a killer move with his light-squared bishop, and}
55. Qxg5+ Ng6 {keeps White at bay.}) 53. Qxf8+ Qxf8 54. Bxf8 {and now White
won uninterestingly...} Rd1 55. Be7 h6 56. Bf8 Rd2+ 57. Kg3 Rxa2 58. Bxh6 Ra3+
59. Kg2 Ra2+ 60. Kf3 Rxh2 61. Bxg5 a5 62. Bf6+ Kg8 63. g5 1-0

[Event "4NCL Division 1a"]
[Site "Birmingham ENG"]
[Date "2015.02.14"]
[Round "5.131"]
[White "Pert, Nick"]
[Black "Cobb, James"]
[Result "0-1"]
[ECO "D35"]
[WhiteElo "2565"]
[BlackElo "2423"]
[Annotator "Saunders,John"]
[PlyCount "104"]
[EventDate "2015.02.14"]
[WhiteTeam "Guildford 2"]
[BlackTeam "South Wales Dragons"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. Nf3 e6 3. c4 d5 4. Nc3 Nbd7 5. cxd5 {The exchange rate in the
Queen's Gambit is much higher than it was in the old days (when you could get
more for your pounds, shillings and pence, too). Perhaps players these days
seem to think they can obtain a significant edge by an early exchange on d5.}
exd5 6. Bf4 c6 7. e3 Nh5 8. Be5 ({Not the main line, which is} 8. Bg5 Be7 9.
Bxe7 Qxe7 10. Qc2 {, etc.}) 8... Nxe5 9. Nxe5 Nf6 10. Bd3 Bd6 11. f4 {My
database has precisely two games with this line. One, a game between Vadim
Alekseev and Gennadi Kuzmin in 1999 (draw) and, two, Alekhine against somebody
in a simul in Cleveland in 1924, which the future world champion lost.} O-O 12.
O-O c5 13. Qf3 cxd4 14. exd4 Qb6 15. Qf2 Bb4 16. Rae1 Qa5 17. Re3 Bxc3 18. bxc3
Ne4 {[diag]} 19. Qh4 $2 ({White goes all out for the attack, but it turns out
badly.} 19. Qe1 $1 {is Houdini's suggestion and it looks useful. If} f5 $5 ({
All three pawn grabs are disastrous:} 19... Qxc3 $4 20. Rxe4 {wins}) (19...
Nxc3 $4 20. Bc2 {wins a piece}) (19... Qxa2 $2 20. f5 $1 {and White's attack
looks unstoppable.}) 20. c4 $1 Qxe1 21. Rfxe1 Be6 22. c5 {White has the edge.})
19... Qxc3 20. f5 (20. Qxh7+ $5 Kxh7 21. Bxe4+ dxe4 22. Rxc3 {looks OK at
first sight but} f6 $1 23. Nc4 Rd8 $1 {is a bit tricky, e.g.} 24. Rd1 Bg4 25.
Rd2 Rac8 {and Black is definitely better.}) 20... Qxd4 21. Ng4 f6 22. Kh1 Qc5 (
{Typically, the engine finds something clever:} 22... Kh8 $1 {when} 23. Bxe4
dxe4 24. Rh3 {is answered by} Bxf5 $1 {The usual stricture applies: most
humans would be reluctant to trust their calculations to risk this.}) 23. Qh5
Ng5 24. h4 ({Kicking the knight with the h-pawn is all very well but it means
that a future Rh3 will no longer support a queen attack on h7. Instead,} 24.
Rg3 $5 Qe7 25. Ne3 {keeps the tactical pot bubbling a bit longer.}) 24... Ne4
25. Bxe4 dxe4 26. Rg3 Kh8 27. Ne3 Bd7 28. Qg4 Rf7 29. h5 (29. Qxe4 Re7 30. Qg4
Bc6 {doesn't look any better.}) 29... h6 30. Qf4 Qe5 {Black decides to cash in
one of his extra pawns to liquidate. It turns out well for him.} 31. Qxe5 (31.
Qg4 {keeps the queens on but impedes White still further.}) 31... fxe5 32. Rg4
Raf8 33. Rxe4 Bxf5 34. Rxe5 Bd7 35. Rd1 ({Better to exchange off a pair of
rooks with} 35. Rxf7 Rxf7 36. Kg1 {but after} Rf4 37. Re7 Bc6 {things still
look pretty grim for White.}) 35... Bc6 36. Kg1 Rf2 37. a3 Re2 38. Rf1 Rxf1+
39. Kxf1 Ra2 40. Re7 Rxa3 41. g4 (41. Nf5 Ra1+ 42. Kf2 Ra2+ 43. Ke3 Rxg2 {is
hopeless.}) 41... Ra4 42. Ke2 Rf4 43. Rc7 a5 44. Kd3 a4 45. Nf5 Rxg4 46. Ne7
Be4+ 47. Ke3 Kh7 48. Rc8 a3 49. Ra8 Bc2 50. Kd2 Ra4 51. Rf8 a2 52. Ng6 {Not
the subtlest of last-try cheapos...} Bxg6 0-1

[Event "4NCL Division 1a"]
[Site "Birmingham ENG"]
[Date "2015.02.14"]
[Round "5.141"]
[White "Lawton, Geoff"]
[Black "Collins, Sam"]
[Result "0-1"]
[ECO "C90"]
[WhiteElo "2382"]
[BlackElo "2491"]
[Annotator "Saunders,John"]
[PlyCount "58"]
[EventDate "2015.02.14"]
[WhiteTeam "Warwickshire Select 1"]
[BlackTeam "Barbican 4NCL 1"]

1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bb5 a6 4. Ba4 Nf6 5. O-O Be7 6. Re1 b5 7. Bb3 O-O 8. d3
d6 9. c3 Na5 10. Bc2 c5 11. d4 {Taking two moves to reach d4. The loss of a
tempo doesn't always matter quite as much as it seems to here.} Qc7 12. Nbd2 ({
This was White's last chance to close the queenside with} 12. d5 {and he's
made to regret the omission.}) 12... cxd4 13. cxd4 Nc6 14. d5 Nb4 15. Bb1 a5
16. a3 ({Weakening the b3 square. Maybe} 16. Nf1 Bd7 17. Bd2 Na6 18. h3 Rfc8
19. Ng3 Nc5 {is preferable, but White remains very passive.}) 16... Na6 17. Nf1
Nc5 18. Bd2 a4 19. Bb4 Qa7 20. N3d2 Bg4 $1 21. Qc1 ({Chucking in} 21. Bxc5 Qxc5
{and then playing} 22. Nf3 {isn't great but could be better than having the
queen forced to the uncomfortable c-file.}) 21... Rac8 22. Bc3 Bd8 23. Ne3 Ba5
24. Bc2 Rc7 25. Qb1 Rfc8 26. Bd1 Bd7 27. Be2 (27. Bf3 {is the best grovel
Houdini can come up with, when} Bxc3 28. bxc3 Na6 29. Nd1 {is not as bad as it
looks.}) 27... g6 28. Nd1 Bb6 29. Ne3 $2 {Worn down by the incessant pressure,
White blunders.} Nb3 $1 {[diag]} (29... Nb3 {Having spent the best part of
twenty years of my chess career grovelling around on the back two ranks in
positions like this, I feel I can truly empathise with White's plight here.
I'd imagine myself thinking, thus: "I could play} 30. Nxb3 ({or maybe} 30. Bd3
{, oh, but Black's got} Rxc3 $1) {but then he's got} 30... Bxe3 31. fxe3 Qxe3+
32. Kh1 Nxe4 {... you know what? To hell with it: why don't I just resign and
go to the bar?"}) 0-1

[Event "4NCL Division 1b"]
[Site "Birmingham ENG"]
[Date "2015.02.14"]
[Round "5.2"]
[White "Edouard, Romain"]
[Black "Haria, Ravi"]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "D38"]
[WhiteElo "2627"]
[BlackElo "2205"]
[Annotator "Saunders,John"]
[PlyCount "53"]
[EventDate "2015.02.14"]
[WhiteTeam "Guildford"]
[BlackTeam "Cambridge University"]
[WhiteTeamCountry "ENG"]
[BlackTeamCountry "ENG"]

1. d4 e6 2. c4 d5 3. Nc3 Nf6 4. Nf3 Bb4 5. cxd5 exd5 6. Bg5 Nbd7 7. Rc1 (7. e3
{and 7.Qc2 have been played more often but this is becoming trendy, having
been played by Carlsen amongst others.}) 7... O-O 8. e3 c5 9. dxc5 Qa5 10. a3
$5 {A bold move, entailing an exchange sacrifice.} (10. Nd2 {is answered by} b6
{, but has scored poorly in practice.}) 10... Bxc3+ 11. Rxc3 Ne4 12. b4 Nxc3
13. Qa1 Qa4 14. Qxc3 a5 15. b5 {[diag] White has a pawn for the exchange, the
black queen is caught behind enemy lines and the black pieces are struggling
to develop. However, White has a few problems, too: his king badly needs to
escape the scene as he is vulnerable to a knight sac on c5, followed by a
heavy piece invasion via the opened c-file. In practice, however, Black has
yet to make this idea work and White has scored overwhelmingly.} h6 ({Carlsen
tried the immediate} 15... Nxc5 {against Topalov at Wijk aan Zee in 2007, but
after} 16. Qxc5 Be6 $2 (16... Bd7 {, keeping pressure on b5, was identified by
Topalov as a better move}) 17. Qc1 $1 Rfc8 18. Qa1 Qc2 19. Be2 Qc1+ 20. Qxc1
Rxc1+ 21. Bd1 Ra1 22. a4 Rc8 23. Nd4 Rc4 24. O-O f6 25. Bf4 Bf7 26. h4 {,
Black decided he didn't have enough for his material and resigned.}) 16. Bf4
Nf6 17. Nd4 Ne4 18. Qc1 Bd7 19. f3 Nxc5 $5 ({Houdini rejects this out of hand,
suggesting} 19... Ng5 {is best, but after} 20. Bxg5 hxg5 21. Bd3 Rfe8 22. Kf2 {
, Black is being systematically shut out of the game, with little realistic
chance of counterplay.}) 20. Qxc5 Rfc8 21. Bc7 (21. Qxd5 Rc1+ 22. Kf2 Qd1 23.
g4 g5 $1 {would be a very tricky line to calculate, with any slight mistake
being fatal.}) 21... b6 22. Qxd5 (22. Qxb6 $2 {allows} Qxa3 {, threatening
Qc3+/Qxc7, and Qxe3+.}) ({Houdini analyses} 22. Qd6 Ra7 23. Bxb6 Rc1+ 24. Kf2
Qd1 {out to a win for White but the text is perhaps more sensible, requiring
slightly less rigorous calculation.}) 22... Qxa3 23. Kf2 Qc1 $2 ({White wraps
things up quickly after this.} 23... Qc5 $1 24. Qxd7 (24. Qxc5 bxc5 25. b6 Rxc7
26. bxc7 cxd4 {is not so clear}) 24... Rxc7 25. Qg4 {is by no means completely
winning but probably offers enough advantage to satisfy a GM playing a much
lower-rated player.}) 24. Bc4 Qxh1 ({After} 24... Qd2+ {White goes into
reverse with} 25. Be2 {, content simply to menace the d7-bishop and then swing
his rook into play.}) 25. Qxf7+ Kh8 26. Be5 Rg8 27. Qg6 1-0

[Event "4NCL Division 1b"]
[Site "Birmingham ENG"]
[Date "2015.02.14"]
[Round "5.1"]
[White "Wallace, John-Paul"]
[Black "Jones, Gawain"]
[Result "0-1"]
[ECO "E48"]
[WhiteElo "2385"]
[BlackElo "2670"]
[Annotator "Saunders,John"]
[PlyCount "56"]
[EventDate "2015.02.14"]
[WhiteTeam "Cambridge University"]
[BlackTeam "Guildford"]
[WhiteTeamCountry "ENG"]
[BlackTeamCountry "ENG"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nc3 Bb4 4. e3 O-O 5. Bd3 d5 6. cxd5 exd5 7. Nge2 Bd6 (
7... Re8 {is the routine move but the text is quite trendy. If White chases
the bishop with the knight, it retreats and Black then chases the knight with
a pawn - or 'knock for knock', as car insurers like to say.}) 8. Bd2 Re8 9. Rc1
Na6 {New, I think. Black supports the c7-c5 push and is not bothered about
getting doubled a-pawns since White's resultant light squares will be weakened
if the bishop disappears.} 10. a3 c5 11. Nb5 Bf8 12. dxc5 Nxc5 13. Bb4 b6 $1 ({
After} 13... Nxd3+ 14. Qxd3 Bxb4+ 15. axb4 {, White has a slight edge based on
good control of the dark squares, but the text keeps things more edgy.}) 14.
Ned4 $2 ({White gets into trouble after this. Instead} 14. O-O {leaves him
slightly worse but perhaps not seriously so.}) 14... a6 15. Nc3 a5 16. Bxc5
bxc5 17. Nde2 {He has to go back here otherwise ...d5-d4 is even more
unpleasant.} Bb7 18. O-O Rc8 {Black now has a reasonable advantage with his
two bishops, secure centre and active piece play.} 19. Bf5 Rc6 20. Qa4 Rb6 $1 {
[diag]} 21. Qc2 $2 ({I expect many of us would have taken our chances with} 21.
Qxa5 Rxb2 22. Qxd8 Rxd8 23. Rb1 Rxb1 24. Rxb1 Ba6 {but it's the sort of
position with a strong initiative which super-GMs tend to win at a canter.
That said, it's better than the game line, where Black has a more or less
forced sequence leading to a win.}) 21... g6 $1 22. Bh3 (22. Bd3 c4 {traps the
bishop.}) (22. Na4 $5 {is the best of a bad job but} gxf5 23. Nxb6 Qxb6 24.
Qxf5 Ba6 25. Rfe1 Qxb2 {leaves Black with two bishops for a rook.}) 22... d4 $1
{The start of a powerful loose ruck. The threat to the knight and the fork
with d3 are pretty obvious, but it goes further than that.} 23. Rfd1 Rd6 24.
Qb3 dxc3 25. Rxd6 Qxd6 26. Qxb7 Rb8 (26... Qd2 {also scores a try but the text
makes sure of a conversion.}) 27. Qa7 cxb2 28. Rb1 Qd3 0-1

[Event "4NCL Division 1b"]
[Site "Birmingham ENG"]
[Date "2015.02.14"]
[Round "5.4"]
[White "Rogers, Jonathan"]
[Black "Arkell, Keith"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "B12"]
[WhiteElo "2281"]
[BlackElo "2510"]
[Annotator "Saunders,John / Arkell, Keith"]
[PlyCount "82"]
[EventDate "2015.02.14"]
[WhiteTeam "Barbican II"]
[BlackTeam "Cheddleton"]
[WhiteTeamCountry "ENG"]
[BlackTeamCountry "ENG"]

1. e4 c6 2. d4 d5 3. e5 c5 4. c4 e6 5. Nf3 cxd4 6. Nxd4 Bb4+ $5 ({Databases
are peppered with games where Keith has played} 6... Nc6 {but perhaps he
wanted to keep his opponent guessing.}) 7. Nc3 Ne7 8. h4 Nbc6 9. a3 $5 {
Jonathan, perhaps with the far-sighted plan of not being strangled slowly in a
rook and pawn endgame, wants to provoke something sharp.} Bxc3+ 10. bxc3 Nxe5
11. Bf4 N5g6 (11... Nxc4 12. Bxc4 dxc4 {is tempting but maybe} 13. Nb5 O-O 14.
Qxd8 Rxd8 15. Nc7 Nd5 16. O-O-O $5 {gives White a bit of compensation. Instead,
Black gives back material to get some pressure on the e-file.}) 12. Bg3 e5 13.
h5 exd4 14. hxg6 Nxg6 15. Qxd4 O-O 16. cxd5 Re8+ 17. Be2 Ne7 18. Rd1 Nf5 19.
Qd3 {[diag]} Qg5 (19... Qg5 {We haven't quite got there yet, but we're coming
up to a spectacular mutual oversight which needs explaining. Seeking
enlightenment (and also wanting to be sure that the moves were correctly
recorded - mix-ups do happen), I got in touch with Keith on FaceBook to ask
what happened. Keith responded at some length, centring on his thoughts as he
planned the move 19...Qg5. What followed are his own words, lightly edited by
me: "It's impossible to fully explain how such a thing can happen, but let me
try anyway. So, I'm sitting there analysing the move I want to play in
principle - which at the time was 19...Qd8-g5. I know that my advantage
increases if I can make the move, but obviously I am concerned about his
possible reply} 20. Qb5 {So I analyse} Re4 {(other moves didn't look very good
to me)} 21. d6 {- the only move that could give me any problem, as it
threatens to win a piece. Visualising the position, I then hoped that} Be6 {
would be strong, as it threatened the winning 22...Bc4. Of course, the main
potential drawback to this is that he can then fork my rooks with} 22. Qxb7 {
I would then need} Rxe2+ {to work or I would be lost! So - and don't forget,
all this is before playing 19...Qg5 - I set about analysing 22...Rxe2+ as I 
(wrongly!) believed that 19...Qg5 hinged on this.     So, 22...Rxe2+} 23. Kxe2
Bc4+ 24. Kf3 {(obviously forced) and then, I thought, ''please let 24...Re8 be
a winning move''! It certainly looked winning. It was obvious he had to either
put a rook on e1 or his bishop on e5 to stop ...Be2 mate. I didn't look beyond}
Re8 {[diag]} 25. Rde1 ({I saw a pretty mate against} 25. Rhe1 {which was} Qh5+
26. Kf4 g5+ {(my favourite move!)} 27. Kxf5 Qg6+ 28. Kg4 f5+ 29. Kh3 Qh5+ 30.
Bh4 Qxh4#) ({so that just left the irritating} 25. Be5 {to deal with. Find a
good move there and I could play 19...Qg5. I decided that 25...h5 must be
winning and anyway certainly left him in trouble.}) 25... Bd5+ 26. Qxd5 Nh4+ {
So I analysed no more and plunged in with 19...Qg5. He quickly replied 20 Qb5
and, after briefly running through all those nice lines again, I confidently
played 20...Re4.  He continued following my analysis, with 21 d6?? and I had
21...Be6?? ready for him.    So there you have it. The explanation is that we
were playing out a variation I had analysed way ahead, and I didn't stop
properly to check if there might be something else going on!"}) 20. Qb5 Re4 21.
d6 $4 (21. O-O Nxg3 22. fxg3 Re5 $5 {seems to be broadly equal.}) 21... Be6 $4
({What Keith had missed in his move 19 analysis, and what Jonathan also missed
when playing 21.d6, was the bone-crushing} 21... Nxg3 $3 {, which is game over
as} 22. Qxg5 {allows} Rxe2# {mate, while a capture on g3 loses the queen to 22.
..Qxb5 as the e2 bishop is pinned.}) 22. Qd3 $4 (22. O-O $1 Rd8 23. Bd3 {and
White is well in the game.}) 22... Nxg3 {This time Black doesn't fluff his
lines.} 23. fxg3 Qe5 $1 24. Rh4 (24. d7 Rd8 {makes no material difference,
while a king move such as}) (24. Kf1 {loses to} Bc4 {.}) 24... Bg4 25. Qxe4 $1
({A much better bet than} 25. Rxg4 Rxg4 {, which looks pretty hopeless for
White.}) 25... Qxe4 26. Rxg4 Qe5 $6 ({There seems to be no reason not to
snatch a pawn with} 26... Qxg2 27. d7 Rd8 {, with very reasonable winning
chances.}) 27. d7 Qxc3+ $2 ({After this, Black's winning chances evaporate.} 
27... Rd8 {keeps the Black flag flying, though it's by no means obvious how he
can go about winning.}) 28. Kf1 Rd8 29. Re4 $1 {White's firm control of the
e-file is his salvation.} Qc6 ({Possibly another oversight, but it turns out
to be non-critical as the following tactical sequence doesn't leave Black too
much to do to save the game. After} 29... Kf8 30. Bb5 Qf6+ 31. Ke1 g6 32. Re8+
Kg7 33. Rxd8 Qxd8 34. Rc1 {, the game peters out to a draw.}) 30. Re8+ Rxe8 31.
d8=Q g6 32. Qd5 Qc3 33. Bc4 Qf6+ 34. Kg1 Re7 35. Rf1 Qb6+ 36. Kh1 Qc7 {The
zenith of White's game - Houdini scores it at +2.13 - but it is hard to see
how White can bring any more pressure to bear on Black's position or make
meaningful progress. Maybe Magnus Carlsen would have found a way.} 37. Qd4 a6
38. Rd1 b5 39. Bf1 Re8 40. Kh2 Qc2 41. Qd3 Qc5 1/2-1/2

[Event "4NCL Division 1b"]
[Site "Birmingham ENG"]
[Date "2015.02.14"]
[Round "5.174"]
[White "Roberson, Peter T"]
[Black "Rose, Matthew"]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "B22"]
[WhiteElo "2406"]
[BlackElo "2298"]
[Annotator "Saunders,John"]
[PlyCount "43"]
[EventDate "2015.02.14"]
[WhiteTeam "Grantham Sharks 1"]
[BlackTeam "Oxford 1"]

1. e4 c5 2. c3 Nf6 3. e5 Nd5 4. Nf3 {I always used to punt 4.d4 in my c3
Sicilian days but this alternative has quite a lot going for it.} Nc6 5. Bc4
Nb6 6. Bb3 d6 (6... c4 7. Bc2 Qc7 8. Qe2 g5 $5 {is one reason I shied away
from 4.Nf3. As Corporal Jones might have said, had he been a chess player: "c3
Sicilian players don't like it up 'em - the cold steel of ...g7-g5!"}) 7. exd6
e6 (7... Qxd6 8. O-O Be6 {gets a fair bit of traffic, but Black decides to
steer down a side road.}) 8. d4 cxd4 9. cxd4 Bxd6 10. O-O O-O 11. Nc3 Nd5 12.
Re1 Be7 13. Bc2 g6 $6 {There doesn't seem to be any need to weaken the
kingside in this way, or at least not yet.} 14. Bh6 Re8 15. Qe2 Qb6 16. Bb3 $1
Nxc3 (16... Nxd4 17. Nxd4 Qxd4 18. Bxd5 exd5 19. Rad1 {looks risky but} Qh4 20.
Nxd5 Be6 $5 {might be playable.}) 17. bxc3 Bd7 18. d5 exd5 19. Bxd5 {[diag]
With all White's pieces now poised to strike, Black can't afford an inaccuracy.
} Qc5 $2 (19... Bf6 $1 {was the last chance:} 20. Qc4 Rxe1+ 21. Rxe1 Nd8 {
clings on, though} 22. Qf4 Bg7 23. Ne5 Bxh6 24. Qxh6 Qd6 25. c4 {is still very
promising for White.}) 20. Rad1 Rad8 (20... Bf5 21. c4 {gives White the choice
of Ne5 and Qb2 as winning moves on the next turn.}) (20... Bd6 $5 {at least
forces White to find some precise moves:} 21. Be3 $1 Qxc3 22. Bb3 Qf6 23. Qc4
$1 Re7 {(Otherwise Rxd6 wins)} 24. Qd5 $1 {and something has to give.}) 21.
Bxf7+ $1 Kxf7 22. Rxd7 $1 (22. Rxd7 {Capturing the rook allows mate in one,
while} Rf8 23. Qe6+ Ke8 24. Red1 {is the simplest way to win.}) 1-0

[Event "4NCL Division 1b"]
[Site "Birmingham ENG"]
[Date "2015.02.14"]
[Round "5.173"]
[White "Martins, David Pires Tavares"]
[Black "Ghasi, Ameet K"]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "A45"]
[WhiteElo "2284"]
[BlackElo "2466"]
[Annotator "Saunders,John"]
[PlyCount "77"]
[EventDate "2015.02.14"]
[WhiteTeam "Oxford 1"]
[BlackTeam "Grantham Sharks 1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. Bg5 Ne4 3. Bf4 d6 4. Nd2 Bf5 5. Nxe4 Bxe4 6. f3 Bg6 7. e4 e6 8.
Qd2 d5 9. Bd3 c5 $6 {Curiously, though Houdini places this as fourth choice
after Nc6, Qd7 and Be7, it is not too critical of this move. Personally I'd
hate having to play Ke7, blocking the f8 bishop and exposing the king to
possible risk so early in the game.} 10. Bxb8 Rxb8 (10... Qxb8 11. Bb5+ Kd8 12.
exd5 {is visibly worse along the d-file.}) 11. Bb5+ Ke7 12. dxc5 {[diag]} dxe4
$2 ({This is the definitive error. Instead,} 12... a6 $1 {and now if} 13. Ba4 (
13. Bd3 {might be better}) 13... dxe4 14. Qc3 Qc7 15. O-O-O {, Black has time
for} b5 $1 {and Black is in no immediate danger. Indeed, after} 16. Bb3 Ke8 $1
17. fxe4 Qxc5 18. Qd2 Be7 {Black may even be a bit better.}) 13. Qc3 Qc7 14.
O-O-O Rd8 ({No time for} 14... Qf4+ 15. Kb1 Rd8 {as after} 16. Rxd8 Kxd8 17.
Qd4+ {the black king will be driven out into the centre via f6 and has no
chance of survival.}) 15. Ne2 a6 16. Ba4 f6 {Black is desperate to find a
square for his king but it's already too late.} 17. c6 $1 {The computer has
still more diabolical tricks up its sleeve but this will do nicely.} bxc6 (
17... b5 18. Bb3 Be8 19. Rxd8 Kxd8 20. Nd4 Kc8 21. Rd1 {is an easy win.}) 18.
Bxc6 exf3 19. Qc5+ Kf7 (19... Rd6 20. Rxd6 Qxd6 21. Qa7+ Kd8 22. Rd1 {is
curtains.}) 20. Be8+ Rxe8 21. Qxc7+ {and Black could have saved himself
further pain by resigning now instead of playing on to move 39.} Re7 22. Qc6
fxe2 23. Rd8 Bh5 24. h3 f5 25. Qc4 g5 26. g4 Bg6 27. Qxe2 h5 28. Rf1 hxg4 29.
hxg4 Rh4 30. gxf5 Bxf5 31. Qxa6 Rc7 32. Rxf8+ Kxf8 33. Qd6+ Re7 34. b4 Ke8 35.
b5 Rc4 36. Rf2 Rd7 37. Qe5 Kd8 38. b6 Rd5 39. b7 1-0

[Event "4NCL Division 1b"]
[Site "Birmingham ENG"]
[Date "2015.02.14"]
[Round "5.186"]
[White "Walker, Nicholas P"]
[Black "Burrows, Martin P"]
[Result "0-1"]
[ECO "B92"]
[WhiteElo "2173"]
[BlackElo "2130"]
[Annotator "Saunders,John"]
[PlyCount "138"]
[EventDate "2015.02.14"]
[WhiteTeam "Hackney 1"]
[BlackTeam "e2e4.org.uk 1"]

1. e4 c5 2. Nf3 d6 3. d4 cxd4 4. Nxd4 Nf6 5. Nc3 a6 6. Be2 e5 7. Nb3 Be7 8. O-O
O-O 9. Be3 Be6 10. f3 Nbd7 11. a4 Qc7 12. a5 Rac8 13. Rf2 Qc6 14. Bd3 d5 15.
exd5 Nxd5 16. Nxd5 Bxd5 17. Bf5 Be6 18. Be4 Qc7 19. Qd3 Bc4 20. Qc3 f5 21. Bd3
Be6 22. Qxc7 Rxc7 23. Re2 Bf6 24. Bd2 g6 25. Rae1 Bd5 26. Bb4 Rfc8 27. Nd2 Nc5
28. Bc4 Bxc4 29. Nxc4 Ne6 30. Nb6 Rd8 31. Bc3 Nd4 32. Bxd4 Rxd4 33. c4 Bg7 34.
Kf2 Kf7 35. b3 Rd3 36. Re3 Rxe3 37. Kxe3 Bh6+ 38. Kd3 Re7 39. Nd5 Re8 40. g3
Bg7 41. Re2 h5 42. h3 Rh8 43. b4 h4 44. g4 e4+ 45. fxe4 fxg4 46. e5 Re8 47.
Rf2+ Kg8 48. hxg4 Bxe5 {[diag]} 49. Nf4 $4 ({If White was content with a draw,
he might have tried} 49. Nf6+ Bxf6 50. Rxf6 {where he is only marginally worse,
but the text allows Black to exchange the rooks and improve his chances.})
49... Rf8 $1 50. Nh3 ({Definitely not} 50. Ke4 $4 Rxf4+ 51. Rxf4 Bxf4 52. Kxf4
g5+ 53. Kf3 Kf7 {with a clearly won king and pawn endgame for Black.}) 50...
Rxf2 51. Nxf2 Bg3 $1 {And now it transpires it's going to be a lot worse than
just an exchange of rooks. Black's bishop will come to e1 and pick off a pawn.
If not two...} 52. Nh3 (52. Ne4 Be1 {is equally hopeless.}) 52... Be1 53. b5
Bxa5 54. Ke4 Kf7 55. Kd5 (55. Nf4 Bd8 56. Nd3 a5 57. Nc5 h3 58. Kf3 Bc7 59. Na4
(59. Nxb7 a4 {and the pawn is too fast}) 59... b6 60. c5 bxc5 61. Nxc5 Ke7 62.
Na4 Bb8 {also wins.}) 55... Bc7 56. Ng5+ Ke7 57. Nh3 Kd7 58. Ng5 Bf4 59. Nh3
Be3 60. Ke4 Bc1 61. Nf2 Ba3 62. Kf4 Bd6+ {Black is going around the houses a
bit with his bishop but it doesn't spoil the win.} 63. Kf3 a5 {Two passed rook
pawns, safe from capture, and a bishop commanding operations from a central
post: it doesn't get any better than this.} 64. Nd3 b6 65. g5 a4 66. Kg4 a3 67.
Nc1 Bg3 68. Nb3 Kd6 69. Kh3 a2 0-1

[Event "4NCL Division 1a"]
[Site "Birmingham ENG"]
[Date "2015.02.15"]
[Round "6.3"]
[White "Palliser, Richard"]
[Black "Shaw, John"]
[Result "0-1"]
[ECO "B83"]
[WhiteElo "2445"]
[BlackElo "2426"]
[Annotator "Saunders,John"]
[PlyCount "50"]
[EventDate "2015.02.14"]
[WhiteTeam "White Rose"]
[BlackTeam "Wood Green HK"]
[WhiteTeamCountry "ENG"]
[BlackTeamCountry "ENG"]

1. e4 c5 2. Nf3 e6 3. Nc3 Nc6 4. d4 cxd4 5. Nxd4 Nf6 6. Be2 d6 7. Be3 Be7 8.
O-O Bd7 9. f4 Nxd4 10. Qxd4 Bc6 11. b4 {A move apparently first played by
James Tarjan in 1980. Curiously, the aforementioned player has also made a
reappearance recently after some decades' absence from the game.} b6 12. Bf3
O-O 13. Rad1 Rc8 14. Bf2 Qc7 15. a3 Rfd8 16. Qe3 Bb7 {Perhaps White was now
regretting his overly bold 11th move as it has noticeably weakened the c-file.}
17. Nb5 Qxc2 18. e5 ({Life gets difficult after this.} 18. Nxa7 Rc3 19. Rc1 $5
Rxe3 20. Rxc2 Rxa3 21. Nb5 Raa8 22. e5 {is suggested by Houdini.}) 18... Nd5
19. Bxd5 Bxd5 20. exd6 Bf8 21. Nxa7 ({It was a tough choice between this and} 
21. Rc1 Qg6 22. Qg3 Rxc1 23. Rxc1 Qe4 {, which looks pretty good for Black.})
21... Rc3 22. Qxb6 ({The alternative was to grovel with} 22. Qe1 Rxa3 23. Nb5
Ra2 {when} 24. Nc3 {may be answered by} Bb7 $1 {since} 25. Nxa2 $4 {allows
mate with} Qc6 {, etc.}) 22... Rxd6 23. Qb8 Rd3 ({Houdini suggests} 23... Qe4 {
, forcing} 24. Rxd5 Rxd5 {. Though this does not appear wholly convincing to
the human eye, the computer thinks it's game, set and match.}) 24. Rc1 $2 {
[diag]} ({This meets with a scintillating refutation. The alternative was} 24.
Rxd3 $1 Qxd3 25. Re1 {(To cover Qe4)} Qg6 26. Bg3 $1 {when Black still has
work to do, e.g.} Rd7 27. Qb6 h5 28. f5 $1 Qxf5 29. Qf2 Qg6 30. Nb5 {, etc.})
24... Rg3 $3 {Lawrence Cooper, with an eye to the g3 square, the location of a
famous Frank Marshall sacrifice back in 1912, asked if the board was showered
with gold coins after this move.} 25. hxg3 (25. Rxc2 Rxg2+ 26. Kh1 Rg3# {mate.}
) 25... Qe4 (25... Qe4 {White has a choice between being mated in one move, or
in 13 moves after} 26. Qxf8+ {- I'll leave readers to amuse themselves working
out how White can keep the game going that long.}) 0-1

[Event "4NCL Division 1a"]
[Site "Birmingham ENG"]
[Date "2015.02.15"]
[Round "6.114"]
[White "Greet, Andrew N"]
[Black "Webb, Matthew"]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "E68"]
[WhiteElo "2450"]
[BlackElo "2208"]
[Annotator "Saunders,John"]
[PlyCount "103"]
[EventDate "2015.02.15"]
[WhiteTeam "Wood Green HK"]
[BlackTeam "White Rose 1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 g6 3. g3 Bg7 4. Bg2 O-O 5. Nc3 d6 6. Nf3 Nbd7 7. O-O e5 8. Qc2
Re8 9. Rd1 c6 10. e4 exd4 11. Nxd4 Qa5 12. h3 Nb6 13. b3 d5 14. exd5 cxd5 15.
cxd5 Nfxd5 16. Nxd5 Nxd5 17. Bb2 Rd8 18. a3 Qb6 19. Rd2 Nf6 20. Rad1 Bd7 21. b4
Bh6 22. Rd3 Rac8 23. Qb3 Re8 24. a4 a6 25. b5 a5 26. Rc3 Bg7 27. Rxc8 Bxc8 28.
Rc1 h5 29. Qc4 Rd8 30. Nf3 Ne4 31. Qxe4 Bxb2 32. Re1 Qf6 33. h4 b6 34. Qc6 Bd7
35. Qc7 Bg4 36. Ng5 Rc8 37. Qb7 Bd4 {[diag] The advantage in this game had
already gone back and forth a couple of times - and is going to do so twice
more.} 38. Bf3 $2 (38. Kh2 $5 Bxf2 39. Rf1 {remains balanced, so the engine
tells me. White has the threat of 40.Ne4 forking quuen and bishop but it's
decidedly complex after} Rc2 $5) 38... Rc2 $1 {Now Black is in dire trouble.}
39. Rf1 Ra2 40. Kg2 Qf5 $1 ({Not} 40... Rxa4 $4 {when} 41. Bd5 $1 {turns the
tables.}) 41. Qc6 Bc5 42. Qa8+ Kg7 43. Qb7 Bxf3+ ({Black could have played} 
43... Rxa4 $1 {this time if he had spotted that, after} 44. Bd5 {comes} Be2 $1
{and Black gets his retaliation in first. But the text is pretty good too.})
44. Qxf3 Qxf3+ 45. Kxf3 Ra3+ $2 ({Best not to chase the white king up the
board, where it finds a new purpose, and rather play} 45... Rxa4 {immediately.}
) 46. Ke4 Rxa4+ 47. Kd5 Rd4+ 48. Kc6 Rd6+ 49. Kc7 Rd2 $4 ({Disastrous, turning
a likely win into a loss: instead} 49... Rd3 {and Black can then let the
a-pawn off the leash, with a probable win.}) 50. Ne4 Rb2 (50... Rc2 51. Nxc5
Rxc5+ 52. Kxb6 {is worse.}) 51. Nxc5 Rxb5 52. Na4 {Black could play on but his
long-term chances of survival are minimal.} 1-0

[Event "4NCL Division 1a"]
[Site "Birmingham ENG"]
[Date "2015.02.15"]
[Round "6.122"]
[White "Zhou, Yang-Fan"]
[Black "Turner, Matthew"]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "C66"]
[WhiteElo "2470"]
[BlackElo "2481"]
[Annotator "Saunders,John"]
[PlyCount "93"]
[EventDate "2015.02.15"]
[WhiteTeam "Guildford 2"]
[BlackTeam "Barbican 4NCL 1"]

1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. d4 d6 4. Bb5 Bd7 5. O-O Nf6 6. Nc3 {We've transposed
into an old-fashioned Steinitz defence of the Ruy Lopez.} exd4 7. Nxd4 Be7 8.
Re1 O-O 9. a4 Re8 10. a5 Nxd4 11. Qxd4 Bxb5 12. Nxb5 d5 (12... c6 {seems more
natural and then} 13. Nc3 d5 14. e5 Nd7 15. Qg4 {, etc.}) 13. Bf4 {[diag]} Nxe4
$2 ({This requires a lot of calculation and it rather looks as if White saw
further than Black.} 13... dxe4 {looks safe enough for Black, though his extra
pawn won't be worth much.}) 14. Nxc7 Bc5 15. Qxc5 Nxc5 16. Rxe8+ Qxe8 17. Nxe8
Rxe8 18. Be3 $1 {Black has problems on the g1-a7 diagonal. He can avoid
material loss but not a positional disadvantage.} Rc8 (18... b6 19. b4 Nd7 20.
Rd1 Re5 21. c4 {leaves Black with considerable problems.}) 19. Rd1 Na4 20. Rxd5
Nxb2 21. Rb5 Rxc2 ({Though it means putting up with being a pawn down,} 21...
Nc4 {is better, e.g.} 22. Bxa7 f6 23. g4 Nd6 24. Rd5 Nc4 25. Kg2 Ne5 {and it's
not over.}) 22. Rxb7 h5 23. Rxa7 Nd1 24. Bb6 Nxf2 25. h3 ({Not} 25. Bxf2 $2
Rc1+ {, regaining the piece with a probable draw in prospect.}) 25... Ne4 26.
Re7 Rc1+ 27. Kh2 Nd2 $2 ({After this Black is not going to be able to give up
his knight for the pawn. Instead} 27... Nd6 28. a6 Nc8 29. Be3 Rc3 30. a7 Nxa7
31. Bxa7 {and it looks like we could be headed for the hungry arbiter's
nightmare - a rook and bishop versus rook endgame.}) 28. a6 Nf1+ 29. Kg1 Ne3+
30. Kf2 Nd5 31. Re8+ Kh7 32. Bd4 $1 Nc7 (32... Rc2+ 33. Kf3 Ra2 34. a7 Nc7 35.
Rb8 $1 {, preparing Be3 and then Rc8, to chase away the knight before
promoting the pawn in order to win the rook.}) 33. a7 Rd1 (33... Rc2+ 34. Kf3
Rc4 35. Be3 Ra4 36. Rc8 {wins.}) 34. Bb6 Nxe8 35. a8=Q Nf6 36. Be3 Rd5 37. Qa4
Rf5+ 38. Ke2 Nd5 39. Bd2 g6 40. Qd4 f6 41. Qa7+ Kg8 42. Bh6 Re5+ 43. Kf2 Ne7
44. Qa2+ Rd5 45. Qa8+ Kf7 46. Qf8+ Ke6 47. Qe8 1-0

[Event "4NCL Division 1b"]
[Site "Birmingham ENG"]
[Date "2015.02.15"]
[Round "6.158"]
[White "Steil-Antoni, Fiona"]
[Black "Hebden, Mark"]
[Result "0-1"]
[ECO "C47"]
[WhiteElo "2083"]
[BlackElo "2491"]
[Annotator "Saunders,John"]
[PlyCount "58"]
[EventDate "2015.02.15"]
[WhiteTeam "Cheddleton 1"]
[BlackTeam "Guildford 1"]

1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Nc3 Nf6 4. g3 d5 5. exd5 Nxd5 6. Bg2 Nxc3 7. bxc3 Bc5 8.
O-O O-O 9. d3 Bb6 10. Re1 ({Simon Ansell played} 10. Qe2 {here against Mark
Hebden in 1997.}) 10... Qf6 11. Bd2 Re8 12. Qe2 h6 13. h3 Bd7 14. Nh2 Rad8 15.
Ng4 Qg6 16. Kh2 h5 17. Be4 $2 ({This intermezzo move only helps Black to
improve his position.} 17. Ne3 {is OK, though} Be6 {, followed by ...f7-f5 or .
..h5-h4 gives Black the better chances.}) 17... Qe6 18. Nh6+ $5 (18. Ne3 {
allows} Qxh3+ {and the prospect of a miserbale grind a pawn down, so White
decides to go all-in. It's not sound but it nearly paid off.}) 18... gxh6 19.
Qxh5 Kg7 20. g4 Rh8 21. f4 Ne7 $2 ({Mark Hebden described this as "a clanger",
preferring} 21... Be8) 22. fxe5 {Objectively, White still has insufficient
counterplay but it is difficult to get his pieces organised.} Bc6 23. Bf5 Qd5 (
{Understandably, the GM doesn't fancy risking a pile of rating points on} 23...
Nxf5 24. gxf5 Qd5 25. Qg4+ Kh7 26. Bxh6 $1 {which might be easy for a computer
but is too messy for a human to contemplate.}) 24. Be4 {[diag]} Qxe4 $2 ({Not
sure which permutation of exclamation marks and question marks to give to
Black's 24th move. It worked well but the computer finds a whopping big flaw
in the analysis. Instead} 24... Qe6 {and the game goes on.}) 25. dxe4 $2 ({The
refutation of Black's faulty queen sacrifice lay in} 25. Rxe4 $1 Bxe4 {
followed up by} 26. Qh4 $1 {. The point is that, even though Black would then
have rook and two minor pieces for the queen, White's various threats to
recapture a minor piece, invade on f6 and then h6 give her overwhelming
compensation. For example, if} Ng6 (26... Nc6 27. Qf6+ Kg8 28. Bxh6 Rxh6 29.
Qxh6 Bg6 30. d4 {is an easy win for White}) 27. Qf6+ {when either the d8 rook
drops off or White gives mate with Qxf7 if the king goes to h7. As played,
White's all-important bishop disappears and the Black pieces swarm in to
attack the king. A tragedy for White, though the Rxe4/Qh4 idea is by no means
a simple pattern to identify, as exemplified by the fact that so experienced a
player as Mark Hebden should have overlooked it.}) 25... Rxd2+ 26. Kh1 Ng6 {
Putting the queen under close arrest. There is nothing to be done.} 27. Qf5 Rf2
28. Qh5 Rd8 29. g5 Rdd2 0-1

[Event "4NCL Division 1b"]
[Site "Birmingham ENG"]
[Date "2015.02.15"]
[Round "6.156"]
[White "Eggleston, David J"]
[Black "Le Roux, Jean-Pierre"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "B16"]
[WhiteElo "2424"]
[BlackElo "2539"]
[Annotator "Saunders,John"]
[PlyCount "49"]
[EventDate "2015.02.15"]
[WhiteTeam "Cheddleton 1"]
[BlackTeam "Guildford 1"]

1. e4 c6 2. d4 d5 3. Nc3 dxe4 4. Nxe4 Nf6 5. Nxf6+ gxf6 {The Caro-Kann line
for players who like a walk on the wild side. I think it might have been
Julian Hodgson who started playing this regularly with a view to roughing up
the opposition. I can't find any of his games on the database so maybe that
was only in weekenders. Or it's my faulty memory.} 6. c3 h5 {Nigel Short is
another fan of this line.} 7. Bc4 h4 $5 {A but unusual.} 8. Qb3 e6 9. Nf3 Nd7
10. O-O {If Black thought to put White off castling kingside by thrusting his
h-pawn through to h4, his plan hasn't worked.} Nb6 11. Be2 Qc7 12. c4 e5 13.
dxe5 (13. Qc2 {, to keep control of the b1-h7 diagonal, or 13.Re1 also look
pretty good for White. King safety is a major issue for Black.}) 13... fxe5 14.
a4 h3 15. g3 Bg4 16. Bg5 ({Stopping queenside castling.} 16. Re1 {is again a
very strong alternative, e.g.} O-O-O 17. Nxe5 $5 {, with a solid edge for
White.}) 16... Rh5 17. Qe3 Nd7 18. Rad1 f6 {[diag]} 19. Rxd7 $5 ({Pretty good
but the computer finds the still more powerful} 19. Nxe5 $1 Nxe5 20. Bxf6 Bxe2
21. Qxe2 Rf5 22. Rfe1 $1 {when} Rxf6 {is answered by} 23. Qh5+ Qf7 24. Rxe5+
Be7 25. Qxh3 {and the tactics favour White.}) 19... Qxd7 20. Nxe5 $2 (20. Bxf6
{still seems to favour White.}) 20... fxe5 21. Qxe5+ Qe7 $1 ({The only try,
and it's very good:} 21... Kf7 22. Qf4+ {picks off the bishop and should win})
(21... Be7 22. Bxg4 {is hopeless.}) 22. Bxg4 Qxe5 $2 ({This leads to a very
unusual and attractive perpetual check pattern. Instead} 22... Rxg5 $1 23. Bh5+
Kd7 24. Rd1+ Kc8 {allows Black to escape the checks and win with his extra
material, e.g.} 25. Qf4 Re5 26. Bg4+ Kb8 27. Bxh3 a5 28. Rd7 Qc5 $1 {,etc,
when Black can eventually wriggle his way out of the bind and win.}) 23. Bxh5+
Kd7 24. Bg4+ Ke8 (24... Kd6 25. Bf4 Qxf4 26. gxf4 Kc5 {probably doesn't lose
for Black but is certainly no way to try for a win.}) 25. Bh5+ 1/2-1/2

[Event "4NCL Division 1b"]
[Site "Birmingham ENG"]
[Date "2015.02.15"]
[Round "6.165"]
[White "Rendle, Thomas E"]
[Black "Jackson, James P"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "B21"]
[WhiteElo "2378"]
[BlackElo "2297"]
[Annotator "Saunders,John"]
[PlyCount "132"]
[EventDate "2015.02.15"]
[WhiteTeam "Grantham Sharks 1"]
[BlackTeam "e2e4.org.uk 1"]

1. e4 c5 2. d3 Nc6 3. f4 e6 4. Nf3 d5 5. Be2 Nf6 6. e5 Nd7 7. c4 Nb6 8. O-O Be7
9. Be3 O-O 10. Nbd2 Bd7 11. a3 a5 12. Rb1 a4 13. Qe1 Na5 14. g4 Bc6 15. f5 Nd7
16. Qg3 b5 17. h4 Qc7 18. Bf4 Qb7 19. Ng5 Rfe8 20. Be3 exf5 21. gxf5 Nxe5 22.
Bf4 Bxg5 23. Bxg5 f6 24. Bxf6 Nexc4 25. Nxc4 Nxc4 26. Rf2 Ne3 27. Be5 d4 28. f6
Qf7 29. fxg7 Qg6 30. Qxg6 hxg6 31. Bd6 Kxg7 32. Bxc5 Rad8 33. Rc1 Re6 34. Rf4
Nf5 35. Bg4 Kh6 36. Kf2 Rde8 37. Bb4 Ba8 38. Bd2 Kg7 39. Rc7+ R6e7 40. Rxe7+
Rxe7 41. Bxf5 gxf5 42. Rxf5 Bc6 43. Rf4 Rf7 44. Rxf7+ Kxf7 45. Kg3 Ke6 46. Kf4
b4 47. axb4 Kd5 {[diag] White is two pawns up but the bishop are of opposite
colours. A couple of moves before Black had played ...b5-b4, sacrificing the
second of the two pawns, perhaps to allow him to play ...Bb5 in order to tie
the white king to the defence of the d3-pawn. White now has the choice of
staying close to that pawn, or simply to hurl the h-pawn down the board in
order to outmanoeuvre the opposing king and win the d4-pawn.} 48. Kf3 $2 ({
It's logical in many ways, and White comes tantalisingly close to a win, but
it turns out to be the wrong choice. Instead,} 48. h5 $1 Bb5 $5 {is the key
position.} (48... Ke6 49. h6 Kf6 50. h7 Kg7 51. Ke5 {is a very simple win}) {
. However, though it is far from obvious at first sight, White can simply
march up the board with} 49. Kf5 $1 {and take control of the position. He
still has to find a couple of good moves, e.g.} Bxd3+ {(The fact that White's
move allows his opponent to capture with check is perhaps one reason why it is
hard to see.)} 50. Kf6 Kc4 51. h6 Be4 {and now} 52. Be1 $1 {is probably the
clearest winner. The d-pawn can achieve nothing unsupported, while} Kb3 53. b5
Kxb2 54. b6 {and the white pawn is too quick.}) 48... Ke5+ 49. Ke2 Be8 50. Bh6
Kf5 51. Bg7 Kg4 52. Bxd4 Kxh4 53. Ke3 Kg4 54. Ke4 {This plan seems pretty good
too, on the face of it, but it doesn't quite get the job in the face of
accurate defence.} Bc6+ $1 55. Ke5 Bb5 $1 56. Bg1 ({Back-pedalling with} 56.
Ke4 Bc6+ 57. Ke3 Kf5 {doesn't help as the black pieces can easily hold off the
two unconnected columns of pawns.}) 56... Bxd3 57. Kd4 Bf1 58. Kc5 {Again, it
looks to be going well for White with the black king seemingly too far away,
but it's an optical illusion.} Kf5 59. b5 Ke6 60. Kc6 Bg2+ 61. Kc7 Kd5 $1 {The
king switches direction towards the b2-pawn, leaving the bishop to give itself
up for the b5-pawn.} 62. b6 Kc4 63. b7 Bxb7 64. Kxb7 Kb3 65. Bd4 a3 66. bxa3
Kxa3 1/2-1/2

[Event "4NCL Division 1b"]
[Site "Birmingham ENG"]
[Date "2015.02.15"]
[Round "6.183"]
[White "Eames, Robert S"]
[Black "Tan, Justin"]
[Result "0-1"]
[ECO "C45"]
[WhiteElo "2212"]
[BlackElo "2383"]
[Annotator "Saunders,John"]
[PlyCount "52"]
[EventDate "2015.02.15"]
[WhiteTeam "Hackney 1"]
[BlackTeam "Oxford 1"]

1. e4 e5 2. d4 exd4 3. Nf3 Nc6 4. Nxd4 {The Scotch Game. I wonder if this is a
clue to what the players were doing on the previous evening. Pure speculation..
.} Bb4+ 5. c3 Bc5 6. Bc4 (6. Be3 {is more frequently seen, and a bit more
solid.}) 6... Nf6 7. Nxc6 bxc6 8. e5 Qe7 9. Qe2 Nd5 10. b4 $5 Bb6 $1 ({
Provocative. Black could reply} 10... Nxb4 $5 {since} 11. cxb4 {allows} Bd4 12.
Bb2 Qxb4+ {and a recapture on b2. Perhaps White intended 11.0-0!?, giving up a
pawn for development and initiative. But Black doesn't take the bait at all,
settling for a healthy set-up on the queenside, with his bishops radiating
pressure along their diagonals.}) 11. a4 a5 12. b5 Bb7 13. O-O O-O 14. Kh1 {To
be able to support the e5-pawn with f2-f4 in due course. Nevertheless, the
king being on the same diagonal as the b7 bishop could prove to be
uncomfortable later.} Kh8 15. Bd3 Qh4 $1 {Black steps up the pressure. White's
lack of development on the queenside is getting embarrassing.} 16. f4 f6 {
[diag]} 17. Rf3 $2 ({Really optimistic but White is struggling to find a
decent move. Maybe} 17. c4 Nb4 18. Be4 {but} fxe5 {is hard to meet.}) 17...
cxb5 18. Be4 ({When Black unfurled his long-diagonal warhead, he was no doubt
hoping for} 18. Rh3 $4 Qxh3 $1 19. gxh3 Nxf4+ {which is lethal. But there is
no need for anything fancy since White is simply lost here.}) 18... fxe5 $1 19.
g3 ({This time} 19. Rh3 {meets with} Nxf4 $1 20. Bxf4 Qxf4 $1 21. Nd2 (21.
Rxh7+ Kg8 {achieves nothing}) 21... Bxe4 22. Nxe4 d5 {and the three extra
pawns will do the job.}) 19... Qh5 20. axb5 exf4 21. c4 Rae8 22. cxd5 Rxe4 $1
23. Rxf4 Rexf4 ({Simplest. Houdini finds a more spectacular win -} 23... Rf5
24. Qxh5 Bxd5 $3 {- but nobody would believe a human being (ahem) unenhanced
with silicon could find a move like that.}) 24. Qxh5 R4f5 25. Qxf5 Rxf5 {[diag]
Resignation here, with the three queenside pieces still on their original
squares, would have been more aesthetically pleasing but also more
embarrassing for White. Just one more move, then...} 26. Nc3 Rxd5 0-1

